Self-care & Reading

Sometimes you just need to take time for yourself to decompress, to relax, and to just give yourself that chance to breathe again. Really breathe. Whether it’s 30 minutes, an hour, or a morning, afternoon, or evening, you need to take that time for yourself just to deflate and shore yourself up once more. Taking care of you, taking that time for yourself, is needed in order to continue forward positively, I think.

I did just that yesterday. Between school and work, and the horrible winter storm that swallowed up my city once more, the second one in the same week, I was done yesterday. My energy was completely sapped, my mind was all jumbled, I had a mounting to-do list that I just didn’t want to look at (and I love my to-do lists). I was done. Luckily enough, I had the morning off and spent it entirely in bed, well almost. There was some shovelling involved, so much shovelling, so much snow.

I spent the morning in bed, with a cup of coffee, doing nothing but reading, and I needed it. I desperately needed it. I needed that time to let go, let everything wash off of me, and not have to think about anything else other than the story in front of me, and the falling snow outside (I couldn’t forget about that falling snow. Did I mention there’s a lot of snow outside right now?). I dived into a romance novella that I had been saving for a while and just let myself become immersed myself in the story, the characters, the relationship that was unfolding in front of me.

The novella that I read was The Governess Affair by Courtney Milan (which I believe is still free on most digital platforms at the moment). It’s the prequel novella to her Brothers Sinister series, and it is a series that contains some of my favourite novels she has written.

The relationship that unfolded between Serena and Hugo was one of a battle of wills and fortitude and a love that had the opportunity to blossom in-between that battle. Both characters did not back down from each other, they stood their ground, found their voices, and fell in love with one another. It was just a really nice read and one that reignited my desire to complete the Brothers Sinister series. The novella was also a timely one. Courtney Milan doesn’t shy away from tough issues in her writing, and she didn’t in this one. Power and consent played significant parts in this novella. It tackled to what degrees of each exist in the world, in relationships, and how they can be taken away and restored. Like I said, I enjoyed the novella and is that I would recommend.

If you were like me yesterday, today, I urge you to find a little bit of time and take it for yourself and just relax. Whether it be through reading or watching your favourite TV show, playing a video game, or just going for a walk, I urge you to do it.

I hope you’re having a good Friday.

Tune in next week for a return to my #RomanceMusings Spotlight series.